The protesters complained that lack of maintenance in the society was increasing the risk of accidents. They alleged that the builder, Ajnara Group, was turning a blind eye to the shoddy security service, malfunctioning lifts and lack of adequate firefighting equipment in the society, despite the residents paying maintenance charges every month.

Shobhit Chitransh, a resident of Saffron Tower in Ajnara Gen-X, said: “We have been pursuing this matter for two years now, but nothing has happened so far. The builder keeps saying the changes will be done, but nothing really happens.”

Citing a recent incident of elevator malfunction, Chitransh said, “My wife and two-month-old daughter were stuck in a lift on the 15th floor on Friday. The lift suddenly stopped midway between the 15th and the 16th floors. My wife couldn’t raise an alarm as the lift did not have any alarm buttons. They were trapped for 15 minutes and were pulled out with a lot of difficulty. Two more such incidents also occurred recently, and those trapped had to be rescued by guards.”

Residents also said a woman was recently harassed in the society. “But when the CCTV cameras were scanned for a footage, it was found that they were not working. Is this what we deserve,” asked a resident on condition of anonymity.

Meanwhile, Sanjeev Verma, manager (technical), Ajnara Group, said: “The lifts are an external agency, and maintaining them is their responsibility. We have stationed technical and security teams at the society to take care of any lapses, and there is no such problem. Lifts break down sometimes, but they are repaired immediately.”

A spokesperson for the builder said, “We have outsourced the maintenance of the society to a third-party agency, and we don’t directly interfere with their work. But now we will push them to pull up their socks.”

A meeting between representatives of the builder and residents is scheduled for Thursday, June 22.

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Legal remedies available to homebuyers against builders for unfair practices adopted

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